Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by the fabulous Jill over at Breaking the Spine!:)*Last one of 2014!!*

What I'm waiting on this week:

*Pretty cover!! It's so happy. :) *

Plot blurb:

This innovative, heartfelt debut novel tells the story of a girl who's literally allergic to the outside world. When a new family moves in next door, she begins a complicated romance that challenges everything she's ever known. The narrative unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, texts, charts, lists, illustrations, and more.

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I'm allergic to the world.I don't leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He's tall, lean and wearing all black--black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can't predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It's almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

I'm so sorry I haven't been active lately; I expected my semi-hiatus to last until the end of last week, but several things came up unexpectedly, and I've been busy busy busy. Hopefully, I'll be more free by the end of next week!! (And maybe post some reviews and reflection posts. :D)

The transfer to tagging is still ongoing, and I really, really hope to be done with that by the end of this month/year (OMG 2014 IS ALMOST OVER!!). But I think I'll probably be done by the end of winter break in January lol.

I'm also hoping to do another giveaway soon (just cuz you guys are all awesome ;) ), but that's not set in stone. If I do do (heh do do) a giveaway, it will most likely be in January.

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

A sumptuous and epically told love story inspired by A Thousand and One Nights

Every dawn brings horror to a different family in a land ruled by a killer. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, takes a new bride each night only to have her executed at sunrise. So it is a suspicious surprise when sixteen-year-old Shahrzad volunteers to marry Khalid. But she does so with a clever plan to stay alive and exact revenge on the Caliph for the murder of her best friend and countless other girls. Shazi's wit and will, indeed, get her through to the dawn that no others have seen, but with a catch . . . she’s falling in love with the very boy who killed her dearest friend.

She discovers that the murderous boy-king is not all that he seems and neither are the deaths of so many girls. Shazi is determined to uncover the reason for the murders and to break the cycle once and for all.

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by the awesome Jill over at Breaking the Spine!:)(PS: I'm going to go on a semi-hiatus until the end of next week due to finals. Thank you for your understanding! :) )

What I'm waiting on this week:

*This cover is so cute!*

Plot blurb:

The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak is Stonewall Book Award-winning author Brian Katcher’s hilarious he said/she said romance about two teens recovering from heartbreak and discovering themselves on an out-of-this-world accidental first date.

It all begins when Ana Watson's little brother, Clayton, secretly ditches the quiz bowl semifinals to go to the Washingcon sci-fi convention on what should have been a normal, résumé-building school trip.

If slacker Zak Duquette hadn't talked up the geek fan fest so much, maybe Clayton wouldn't have broken nearly every school rule or jeopardized Ana’s last shot at freedom from her uptight parents.

Now, teaming up with Duquette is the only way for Ana to chase down Clayton in the sea of orcs, zombies, bikini-clad princesses, Trekkies, and Smurfs. After all, one does not simply walk into Washingcon.

But in spite of Zak's devil-may-care attitude, he has his own reasons for being as lost as Ana-and Ana may have more in common with him than she thinks. Ana and Zak certainly don’t expect the long crazy night, which begins as a nerdfighter manhunt, to transform into so much more…

Saturday, December 6, 2014

I was a bit hesitant to see this movie because I really didn't like Mockingjay... or the entire Hunger Games series for that matter. I felt it was overrated (eh, I still think this...) and at the end, it ran out of steam. Not to mention, it was devoured by the love triangle, and there were so many unnecessary deaths. (I have a more detailed rant on the Hunger Games here.)

But this movie BLEW me away.

I think this was the first time where I thought the YA movie was so much better than the YA book. The movie was able to bring back the heart of the story: standing up for what you believe in (to say it in a very broad manner...). I felt the book (s) lost that message, but this movie totally and completely brought it back.

As for the actors... I'm not a huge fan of Jennifer Lawrence, but she was AMAZING as Katniss in this movie. She gave life to Katniss. In the previous movies, I didn't think she was anything incredible, but she nailed Katniss in this one. Josh Hutcherson wasn't really on screen most of the time, but when he was, he was pretty awesome as well; I noticed Liam Hemsworth improved a LOT. Apart from the main ones, the only other noteworthy actor I thought was Donald Sutherland, the evil President Snow. DANG. He KILLED it (pun totally intended).

Watching the movie, I realized how much the book(s) suffered because of Katniss' limited point of view. I personally love and prefer first person POV. I have nothing against third person point of view, but it's just a random personal preference. (Anyways, digressing...) Because of her first POV, we didn't really get details about the rebellions and the other movements. There would be one sentence descriptions telling us that there had been a rebellion- but that's if we got lucky. Most of the time, I was lost swirling through Katniss' scattered thoughts and the terrible love triangle. But in the movie, it included scenes from the actual rebellions and also a lot of the behind the scenes action that Katniss in the book couldn't have possibly seen. It gave me chills to watch those scenes unfold and to see the passion of these people fighting for justice.

Lastly, there was NO focus on the love triangle. If there was even the slightest bit of focus, it would mostly be about her relationship with Gale as a friend. Actually, anything that had to do with relationships in the movie was nothing of the romantic sort (well... except for literally ONE scene). I loved how the movie explored and emphasized her relationship with the people she was standing for. This was what the books had lost- and this was what the movie brought back.

I totally recommend people to see the movie. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the second part keeps the messages and heart of the first one. All in all, this one movie (well, 2 part-movie) was able to say what three books couldn't.

Today Stephanie Thomas and Rockstar Book
Tours are revealing the cover for LUCIDITY, book 2 in the Raven Chronicles
Duology releasing in January, 2015! Check out the gorgeous cover and enter to
win the first book and the novella!

Beatrice
never thought she'd find herself in the middle of Aura, the city of her sworn
enemy, the Dreamcatchers. Nor did she never think she'd abandon everything
she'd ever known and everyone she'd ever loved to blindly follow Echo, the
Dreamcatcher Prince. Gabe would never forgive her, if he lives, and nor will
any of the Seers. Upon arriving, Beatrice is quickly thrown into the
Dreamcatcher Queen's self-serving plot to save Aura from a disastrous plague,
and Bea's anticipated return to the City is becoming less likely every day she
is held captive and subjected to the epidemic. Her Visions are the key to the
cure, but when her Seer friends show up in Aura as well, Beatrice must learn to
balance her precarious friendship and loyalty to both her people and the
promise she made to help Echo's people. As Beatrice navigates these new people
and customs, she learns that there are more than just the Seers, Dreamcatchers
and Citizens left in the world...and whomever is out there wants to eliminate
all of their competition -- including her.

Exclusive
Excerpt!

Echo was right.
I hadn't seen anything yet. As the limousine cruises up to the gates of Aura, I
can't do anything but stare out the window in complete awe. Aura is the
complete opposite of The City. I immediately understand where it gets its name
from, with its golden-hued buildings and sparkling, translucent glass windows.
Everything glitters, even the sand as it whips around the tall walls that
protect the city from the dry gusts of wind.

I place my fingers on the
limo's window and press my forehead to the glass to get a better look. I can
feel Echo's eyes on me as I react probably as a child would at the first sight
of something they've never seen before. There are no skyscrapers here, no
crowded, jumbled row homes with sooty exteriors. The buildings are no more than
two floors high, allowing for a precious view of the almost purple mountains
that peek up in the distance.

"Echo...this is
beautiful..."

"Thank you. This is the
home of the Dreamcatcher. After The City banished us, we had to travel a long
way to find a place where we'd be safe from attack. We chose this area because
it's so dry, hot and humid, that we don't know who'd willingly want to come out
here. Besides us, of course." Echo scoots over on the leather seat to
sidle up closer to me. "It is beautiful though, isn't it? This is my first
homecoming, to be honest. I've never been out of Aura for this long."

The gates into the city proper
click secure when they are fully-opened, and the limo pulls forward once more.
As soon as we are moving again, I can see the crowds of people who line the
main street, which leads directly to an impressive palace that stands center of
Aura, just like our Institution does in the City. The people are all dressed in
white, some with different colored trims on their robes. They reach out for the
car, calling for Echo, wanting to see their prince.

As we pull around a circle in
front of the Palace, the courtyard is also filled with Dreamcatchers, cheering
for Echo's arrival. He brushes a hand down his robe, smoothing the wrinkles
from the soft fabric. "Are you ready?"

Then, a sudden fear grips me.
"Do they know I am with you?"

Echo's gaze meets mine.
"No."

I want to slap him, and it takes everything in
me not to lose my temper. "What?"

"They don't know you are
with me. I did not tell anyone I was bringing you home. It is a part of my
strategy."

I lock the limo's doors. We stare
at each other for a long while, my chest rising and falling in anger. "How
could you put me in this situation, Echo? I am The Keeper. I'm the leader of
your enemy. You are putting me in great danger, and you know you are."

Echo, in his ever-calm way,
reaches out and helps pull the hood of my robe up over my head. "You will
be fine, because you are my guest. And it is a law in Aura that we must treat
our guests with utmost respect." He pauses. "Not that we get any
guests...ever."

Now, I do smack him. My hand
makes contact with his arm, and I scowl. "You better not get me
hurt."

"Listen to them. They are
too happy to see me. I doubt they'll even take notice of you. No offense."
Echo unlocks the doors and slides across the seat to the other side, where he
can exit first. "Driver, we are ready."

The chauffeur exits the vehicle
and appears again beside Echo's door. As soon as he opens it, the sound of
cheering rushes into the car and Echo sucks in a deep breath. He steps out, and
when I see his hand lower back into the limo, I reach for it and gently rest my
palm against his, using the offered support to help me out of the car.

As my feet touch the floor, my
robes fall all around me like darkness covering the day, and I'm free of the
limousine. Lifting my chin, my eyes move from the ground to the people, and I
swallow as the cheering comes to an abrupt stop when they see my violet irises.
Almost all at once, they take a step back, and no one makes a sound.

I tighten my grip around Echo's
hand, sure that in the next moment, they are going to rush us and kill me where
I stand. Here I am, their sworn enemy, the representation of The Keeper before
me who persecuted them, ran them out of The City and killed many of them,
including their princess. I stand before them as if none of that had ever
happened. I know, if I were in their place, I'd certainly want to see myself
dead too.

Muttering very quietly to Echo,
I tug on his hand, "Let's go."

About Stephanie

Stephanie Thomas has been writing ever
since she could put letters together to form words. When she was a small child,
she would present her mother and father with self-made newspapers filled up
with make believe stories and pictures. Her love for writing followed her all
throughout her schooling, where she entered and won writing contests of all
sorts. Stephanie decided to become an English teacher and completed her B.A. at
The Pennsylvania State University. While teaching, she later went on to get her
Master’s in writing from The Johns Hopkins University. She completed her very
first manuscript during her graduate studies, and by the end of the program,
she had completed two more. Stephanie is quick to tell anyone that she’s a born
and raised Philadelphian, and her heart will always belong there. She moved to
Baltimore with her husband, and they’ve been living there for the last five
years with their doggie, Sailor.

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

What I'm waiting on this week:Plot blurb:Newbery Honor author of Ella Enchanted Gail Carson Levine weaves a thrilling tale of mystery in this companion to A Tale of Two Castles.

Elodie, the dragon detective Meenore, and the kindly ogre Count Jonty Um are all on their way to Elodie’s home island of Lahnt. Elodie has barely set foot on land before she learns that the Replica, a statue that keeps her island’s deadly volcano from erupting, has been stolen! If the Replica isn't found in three days, a mountain will be destroyed. And when Elodie ends up alone with a cast of characters any of whom may be guilty, she has to use her wits to try to unravel a tangled web of lies.

New York Times bestselling author Gail Carson Levine has written an imaginative, fast-paced mystery that will be enjoyed by fans of A Tale of Two Castles, as well as those meeting Elodie, Meenore, and Count Jonty Um for the first time.Yay!! :) Can't wait for this one to come out!:DReleased: April 21st, 2015 So what are you waiting on this week?:)

Hi guys!!:) So Pulseit is this AWESOME site from Simon & Schuster, and they put books online for free for a certain period of time. For the month of December, pulseit.com will have a different book every day (free!!) for 24 hours. Plus, you can enter here to win all of the books! I'm so excited they are doing this again this year ( and hopefully for many years to come as well ;) ), and I can say from personal experience that this event is perfect for helping you increase your reading speed (LOL). ;)There are so many books on that schedule that I've been wanting to read, and I can't wait to get to them! :) Hope you all have a fabulous week! :DWarm wishes,Kyendwarrior